Filter by section: Book Review

Browse all Publications
  • Book Review

    Histories in the wind: a long overdue book about science communication across Ibero-America

    Comunicar la ciencia en Iberoamérica: un sobrevuelo por la región is the first book-length, regionally authored history of science communication across twelve Ibero-American countries, published to mark the 35th anniversary of RedPOP. Written by practitioners and researchers from within the field, it traces how science communication has developed, and often survived, across vastly different political landscapes, from colonial-era natural history museums to today's social media ecosystems. Particularly striking is how several chapters frame science communication not just as public education but as a form of cultural resistance and democratic resilience. The book has geographical and thematic gaps, but it fills a long-overdue space in the literature and should be on every science communicator's shelf.

    Volume 25 • Issue 4 • 2026

  • Book Review

    Navigating the ethical dimensions of the science-policy interface

    Guidance for researchers seeking to contribute science to the policymaking process typically focuses on technical training, such as how to write op-eds and policy briefs. An under-discussed but vital additional consideration is how to navigate the ethical challenges that arise at the intersection of research and policymaking. In their edited volume, Epstein and Kaplan feature case studies grounded in research experience to identify, describe, and offer guidance on how researchers and policymakers can bridge the science-policy gap in an effective and ethical way.

    Volume 25 • Issue 4 • 2026

  • Book Review

    For scientists who want to better communicate science

    Science Communication for Scientists: Linking Strategy with Creativity, Practice, and Respect serves as a necessary, current resource for scientists seeking to communicate about their work more effectively. The book expertly meets the collective moment in which we find ourselves — socio-politically, based on practical norms and common institutional infrastructures and incentives, and based on the state of the science communication literature — to offer scientists operating in democratic societies a much-needed resource for communicating their science with various stakeholder groups.

    Volume 25 • Issue 3 • 2026

  • Book Review

    What is philosophy of science and public policy?

    This book on philosophy of science and public policy provides a clear introduction to the basics of philosophy of science — scientific methodology, evidence types, and values in science. However, it falls short as an introduction to philosophy of public policy. The review contends that philosophy of public policy comprises two subdisciplines: philosophy of science and political philosophy. The book notably lacks engagement with many key figures in both areas, including Nancy Cartwright and Jonathan Wolff, and lacks treatment of evidence-based policy literature. The book functions adequately as an introductory philosophy of science text but inadequately addresses the unique problematics of evidence-informed policymaking.

    Volume 25 • Issue 3 • 2026

  • Book Review

    Public engagement with science: a practical guide

    Public engagement with science has gained institutional prominence while remaining conceptually fragmented and difficult to operationalise. This review evaluates Public Engagement with Science by Angela Potochnik and Melissa Jacquart as a field-level intervention addressing this condition. The book offers an interdisciplinary, pedagogically grounded framework for understanding, designing, and institutionalising public engagement. More steps regarding its theorization can be made, but the plentitude of strengths lies in conceptual integration and practical design.

    Volume 25 • Issue 3 • 2026

  • Book Review

    Review of the book: Medical Editing – A Guide to Learning the Craft and Building Your Career.

    In Medical Editing – A Guide to Learning the Craft and Building Your Career, Barbara Gastel delivers exactly what the title promises. Moving from introductory overviews to practical insights to ethics and career advice, the book offers a nice entry point for those new to the field. While primarily focusing on medical editing, its insights make it a useful resource for most starting in scientific or academic communication. 

    Volume 24 • Issue 07 • 2025

  • Book Review

    Reviewed book: The Whispers of Rock: Stories from the Earth

    In her book Anjana Khatwa combines geological and Indigenous ways of knowing from across the globe, offering a wide-ranging guide to an area of science communication that can be overlooked, the Earth sciences. This would be sufficient to recommend it to science communicators. The book goes further, however, offering a deeply personal perspective on exclusion and inclusion in academia, and multicultural society. For anyone interested in equitable approaches to science communication, this is an essential read.

    Volume 24 • Issue 07 • 2025

  • Book Review

    Reviewed book: Women Scientists in American Television Comedy — Beakers, Big Bangs and Broken Hearts

    In their book Women Scientists in American Television Comedy, the three authors Karina Judd, Bridget Gaul, and Anna-Sophie Jürgens, present their study on how humor is used to portray women scientists in American television comedies such as The Big Bang Theory. The underlying theory and results are interesting to the wider science communication community, but this book might not be the best way to present them.

    Volume 24 • Issue 05 • 2025

  • Book Review

    How citizens view science communication: pathways to knowledge

    The book edited by Moreno-Castro, Krzewińska and Dzimińska intends to “contribute to the general discussion on the public perception of science, the issue of information overload, trust in science sources and the most effective ways of communicating science information”. The book presents the main results of the CONCISE project funded by the European Commission. In 2019, just before the outbreak of the Covid-19 pandemic, five public consultations were conducted with citizens in Italy, Poland, Slovakia, Spain and Portugal, involving a total of 497 citizens. Four specific topics were at the centre of discussions and consultations with the citizens involved: vaccines, climate change, GMOs, “complementary and alternative medicine”. The European study is documented in detail in the book and conveys the impression of a well thought-out, organised and concerted set of activities. The list of authors includes several well-known researchers in the field of science communication in Europe.

    Volume 24 • Issue 05 • 2025

Total: 106 records